As summer ends one of the biggest talking points about the current pandemic is the inconsistencies arising from the various rules, as we emerge from lockdown.

Indignant voices are a plenty over the seemingly nonsensical nature depending on where you live and what role you play. The earlier, easy to comprehend, stay at home sound bite has been replaced with much more complex protocols requiring patience, understanding and judgement.

We have become used to living in a highly individualistic society where our choices (real or perceived) are paramount. Our expectations of service when and where we want it have been fuelled by easy access to almost anything at a click, placing pressure to deliver more and more, faster and faster.

The pandemic has of course halted much of this as many services struggle to operate at anything close to pre pandemic levels. Customers are starting to question the validity of ‘because of Covid’ as many are themselves individually operating normally; many haven’t in fact stopped working at all.

The whole home working versus office debate is beginning to become more enlightened; many people of course have been successfully working from home for years. Sitting behind this debate are much bigger issues about long-standing, chronic transport infrastructure issues, purpose and enjoyment of work, leadership styles, and the prospects for a whole new generation who don’t have office versus home working experience to even voice an opinion.

The debate has begun to shift away from the archetypal, ‘why should I suffer an awful, expensive commute just to support coffee shops?’ to how can we sensibly adapt to working models that don’t leave a new generation stranded with either no jobs, or lack of prospects through limited visibility. Critically we need to ensure that those disproportionate voices who have had good careers, don’t dominate the agenda.

A whole new era of creativity has been launched in haste and so much of what has been achieved in haste in terms of new working models is positive. There is, however, an incumbent responsibility on all of us to ensure that we include the new generation in our conversations; they have fantastic ideas and lots of hope, but little experience in the world of work. They need to be connected to authentic and caring exemplars to gain experience and reassurance that their world will keep spinning in the face of chronic uncertainty.

We will be tacking this issue head on at CCA Convention 2020 where we will hear from a wide range of experts, and from those who don’t yet know they are experts!

 

‘We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power toward good ends’

Mary McLeod Bethune

 

Over the last few months, we have gathered a huge amount of data and insight into how organisations are tacking these really challenging issues. We look forward to sharing these in the new programme for the year ahead.

 

Have a great weekend everyone!

Anne Marie